Pubdate: Mon, 11 Jul 2016
Source: Toronto Sun (CN ON)
Copyright: 2016 Canoe Limited Partnership
Contact: http://www.torontosun.com/letter-to-editor
Website: http://torontosun.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/457
Author: Sue-Ann Levy

TCHC Safety Fumble

Tackling the urgent matter of drug-dealing thugs is an idea that's
still stalled

He talked tough about getting rid of drug-dealing thugs who have taken
control of some Toronto Community Housing Corp. (TCHC) properties when
his task force released their report last July 15.

Mayor John Tory said at the time that he'd like to see some of the
legislative changes "in process" by the end of 2015 - ones that would
make it easier to not only keep convicted drug dealers from coming
back to live in public housing but also from trespassing on TCHC property.

"This is urgent. This affects the safety and security of the thousands
of people who live in these communities, so by the end of the year I
want to see some progress being made," he said.

Former Task Force secretary Phil Gillies, now a consultant with
Enterprise Public Affairs, says the need to evict drug dealers was
"front and centre" in their July 2015 report.

But the Toronto Sun has learned that one year later almost nothing has
been done to tackle the very legislative changes to the Housing and
Trespass to Property Acts that TCHC officials say are preventing them
from evicting drug dealers (and gangbangers) known to police or
convicted in court - and ensuring they stay out.

Inquiries to TCHC, city and provincial officials last week revealed
the province has not even been approached to enact any changes.
Exactly what shape those changes will take appears to be stalled at
City Hall.

Mark Cripps, a spokesman for the municipal affairs and housing
ministry, confirmed they have not received any "formal request" to
change the legislation.

According to TCHC reports, interim CEO Greg Spearn sent a letter to
Toronto's city manager last September outlining the changes needed.

Peter Notaro, an executive director in the city manager's office, said
officials have since discovered that the proposed changes will have an
impact on the entire homeless service system and need to be considered
"within the broader context" of the city's final response to the task
force (which won't be releasing its report until the end of 2016).

"City staff also agreed any direction to advocate for change in
legislation would need to be approved by council," he added, noting
legislative changes won't happen in 2016 (never mind the end of 2015).

This shameful exercise in foot-dragging doesn't surprise me.
Nevertheless, tell that to the many TCHC residents I've interviewed in
the past year who say they're being held hostage in their buildings by
drug dealers and other criminals.

For example, one Lawrence Heights resident I spoke to last week has
been living in fear since an 18-year-old who helped stab another man
to death two years ago came back to TCHC to live with his mom
following a plea bargain.

She said she's constantly concerned about her 13-year-old daughter's
safety.

"I haven't slept in two years," she told me. "We don't invite visitors
over either because we don't want to compromise their safety."

Gillies said that while working on the task force, he staked out
buildings late at night and saw dealers drive up in their BMWs with
wads of cash, making "no secret of what they were doing."

"They know all the tricks ... they squeeze as much money out of these
people (with addiction problems) as they can," he says. "It's appalling."

TCHC officials have tinkered around the edges of the problem by
beefing up their complement of community safety officers from 81 to
99, installing high-resolution security cameras, conducting safety
audits on buildings, and working to more than double the number of
joint TCHC/ police patrols this year.

After the establishment of a committee last year to look at at-cause
evictions, Graham Leah, TCHC's vice-president of resident services,
created a new procedure at the end of May to "ensure the appropriate
action is taken" to address anti-social behaviour and illegal activity
in TCHC units.

TCHC spokesman Lisa Murray said the new procedure set out which staff
members are to carry out each specific step and the timelines in which
they are to be completed in order to pursue evictions.

"The new eviction-for-cause procedures strengthen the overall
management of evictions-for-cause matters so that the best cases
possible can be taken to the LTB (Landlord and Tenant Board) ... and
(we can) successfully secure eviction orders," she said.
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MAP posted-by: Matt